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Written by

Tracy Schuhmacher

Instead of the traditional boneless chicken breast with an eggy coating, this version of chicken French is composed of a roasted half chicken; the meat is moist and succulent. The sherry wine butter sauce is beautifully balanced. A sizable mound of rustic garlic mashed potatoes and thin, crunchy green beans offer contrast. / TRACY SCHUHMACHER

The restaurant's menu leans Italian, and includes adaptations of a few popular items from the nearby Gusto Restaurant, which recently closed its doors. (The owner of Gusto has joined Benedetto's.) / TRACY SCHUHMACHER

It would be hard to find a more inviting place on a cold, wintry day than Benedettos on Alexander Street. Formerly the home of Lloyd’s Bar & Grille, the Victorian building has rustic brick walls, warm wood floors and a fireplace. The two-story dining room was illuminated with eye-catching red chandeliers and stained glass windows.

Our party of four dined on a weeknight when the restaurant was fairly quiet. The restaurant’s menu leans Italian, and includes adaptations of a few popular items from the nearby Gusto Restaurant, which recently closed its doors. (The owner of Gusto has joined Benedettos.)

The evening began with warm Italian bread and an addictive dipping sauce of olive oil, parmesan and garlic.

Our starters were lobster chowder and a house fries appetizer. The chowder had a creamy bisque-like base that was redolent of lobster and hints of tomato. Floating in it were chunks of potato and bits of lobster. We requested extra bread so we could scrape up every delicious drop. The skinny house fries were topped with sage, thyme and garlic and were served with a gorgonzola dipping sauce.

Of our four entrées, the boneless roasted chicken French was the star. Instead of the traditional boneless chicken breast with an eggy coating, this version was composed of a roasted half chicken; the meat was moist and succulent. The sherry wine butter sauce was beautifully balanced. A sizable mound of rustic garlic mashed potatoes was perfect with the chicken. Thin, crunchy green beans offered textural contrast. I so enjoyed this version of chicken French that I may never return to the traditional one.

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Cappellini polpette consisted of angel hair pasta tangled in homemade meatballs and a choice of sauces: eggplant tomato, Bolognese, vodka sauce or olive oil and garlic. My companion chose the eggplant tomato, which, although flavorful, had a couple of issues. First, the bottom of a meatball had burnt in the pan; every so often a bite had charred flecks that were unpleasant to the palate. It also seemed like too little pasta for the amount of sauce.

Four large pan-seared scallops were tender but did not have much of the brown caramelization you’d expect from pan searing. They were topped with a walnut and dried cherry pesto that received a tepid reaction. Herbed Israeli couscous was a tasty accompaniment, though, as was tender-crisp broccolini.

Pepperoni pizza had a crust that was thick, yeasty and chewy. The rising of the crust caused the cheese and pepperoni to pool toward the middle of the pizza, leaving a wide edge without toppings. My companion ended up leaving a pile of naked crusts on his plate. (In retrospect, another bowl of the bread dipping sauce would have made short work of those crusts.)

Toward the end of our meal we noticed that there were no salt and pepper shakers on our table (or any tables). It was a testament to the skills of Chef William Hughes and his kitchen staff that we hadn’t noticed; all of our food was very well seasoned. (Salt and pepper are available on request.)

We finished by sharing a dessert called The Bomba, a baseball-size ball of peanut butter gelato and a dollop of peanut butter, all covered in chocolate. It was just enough sweetness for the end of an ample meal.

In spite of a few imperfections, we enjoyed our experience at Benedettos. It’s worth noting that Benedettos is affiliated with One Restaurant & Lounge, which is now exclusively a nightclub and a place for special events; Benedetto’s honors gift cards from One.